TX-NM Network Gathering: August 13–15, 2015byoung/slides-generations.pdfTX-NM Network Gathering: August 13–15, 2015 Generations and the Church Bill Young MCC Austin ... William

TX-NM Network Gathering: August 13–15, 2015Generations and the Church

Bill YoungMCC Austin

Last updated: July 22, 2015 at 09:17

Bill Young: 1 Generations Theory

What I’d Like to Discuss

What is Generational Theory?

What is a generation?

The cohort hypothesis

Who are the living generations?

Why is it important?

Why does it matter to the church?

The Church for All People


Sources

William Strauss and Neil Howe. Generations: The History ofAmerica’s Future, 1584 to 2069, William Morrow: New York, 1991.

William Strauss and Neil Howe. The Fourth Turning, BroadwayBooks: New York, 1997.

William Strauss and Neil Howe. Millennials Rising: The NextGreat Generation, Random House: New York, 2000.

Rev. Karl Travis. “Encouraging Generosity in Difficult Times in thePresbyterian Church (U.S.A.),” 2010.www.pensions.org/AvailableResources/-

BookletsandPublications/Documents/pub-506.pdf

and others. A reading list will be provided.


www.pensions.org/AvailableResources/-

BookletsandPublications/Documents/pub-506.pdf

What is Generational Theory?

Created by historians William Strauss and Neil Howe, identifies arecurring generational cycle in American history.

Attempts to be both explanatory andpredictive, in both historical andsociological sense.

May be useful to churches withmulti-generational congregations, or whoare trying to attact multiple generationsto worship.

Rev. Karl Travis (First Presbyterian Church of Fort Worth) hasused generational theory to understand giving patterns in churches.


Becoming our Parents?

A long-standing belief is that one’sviewpoint is largely a function of one’sphase of life.

E.g., young folks in every era tend tothink alike; middle-aged folks thinkalike; old folks think alike; etc.

Is it any wonder that we worry about becoming our mother /father?


Aging in Place: Remaining Ourselves

Counterclaim: 60-year-olds todaydon’t have the same mindset as60-year-olds did 20 years ago; they havethe same mindset as 40-year-olds did 20years ago. Why do you suppose that is?


Aging in Place: Remaining Ourselves

Counterclaim: 60-year-olds todaydon’t have the same mindset as60-year-olds did 20 years ago; they havethe same mindset as 40-year-olds did 20years ago. Why do you suppose that is?

Because they’re the same people! You’re much more likely to besimilar to yourself 20 years ago than to someone 20 years ago whowas then 20 years older than you!

Maybe the generation you belong to is more determinative of yourviewpoint than your phase of life.


Generational Theory

Fundamental claims:

The era in which one is born affects the development of aperson’s worldview.

These are shaped in the firstdecades of our lives by families,friends, communities, significantevents.Thus, folks in each cohort /generation share certain commonvalue systems.These “value systems” aredrivers of behavior and attitudesand good predictors of behaviorand expectations.


Thought Experiment: The GI Generation

Consider the “GI Generation” born from 1901–1924. What do youthink would have shaped that generation’s worldview?




World War I, the Great Depression,the rise of Nazi Germany, ....

What effect might these events havehad on the worldview of the GIGeneration?




World War I, the Great Depression,the rise of Nazi Germany, ....

What effect might these events havehad on the worldview of the GIGeneration?

Sacrifice, patriotism, frugality, support for institutions, cooperativespirit, ...

At what age did they acquire these values? Do you think they keptthose values as they aged?


Phases of Life

Each generation ages though the phases of life:

Youth: (age 0–21) Central role is dependence (growing,learning, accepting protection and nurture, acquiring values)

Rising Adulthood: (age 22–43) Central role is activity(working, starting families and livelihoods, serving institutions,testing values)

Midlife: (age 44–65) Central role is leadership (parenting,teaching, directing institutions, using values)

Elderhood: (age 66–87) Central role is stewardship(supervising, mentoring, channeling endowments, passing onvalues)


What is a Generation?

A “social generation” is the aggregate of all people born over aspan of roughly 20 years, about the length of one phase of life.

Represents roughly the birthdate of one cohort until coming ofage and having children of their own.

The start or end of any “generation” is (obviously) somewhatarbitrary.

Often marked by significant cultural events.


The Living Generations

The following are the generations currently alive (according toStrauss and Howe’s timeline):

GI Generation (born 1901–1924)

Silents (born 1925–1942)

Baby Boomers (born 1943–1960)

Gen X or 13ers (born 1961–1981)

Millennials or Gen Y (born 1982–2003)

Homeland or Gen Z (born 2003–????)

Others place the generational boundaries at other years.


Exercise 1

Gather into groups according to your “generation” (Boomers, GenX, Gen Y, etc.) Within your group answer the following questions:

1 What major events were formative for your generation?

2 Do you think that your generation has any distinctive traits?If so, what are they?

3 What do you perceive to be significant differences betweenyour generation’s worldview and that of your parents?

4 What do you perceive to be significant differences betweenyour generation’s worldview and that of the followinggeneration (if there is one)?


Cycles of Generations

Strauss and Howe, in studying 15 generations in America(1584–present) found a recurring cycle of four “types” ofgenerations:

Civic (Hero)

Adaptive (Artist)

Idealist (Prophet)

Reactive (Nomad)

These four types have repeated in the same order (with oneexception) throughout U.S. history.

Idealist (inner-focused) and Civic (outer-focused) generations aredominant and Adaptive and Reactive generations are recessive.


Characteristics of Generations: Civic/Hero

Civics are a generation of institution builders.

Sense of identity comes frombelonging, not from within.

Strong trust of institutionsand collective action.

Fitting in is more importantthan standing out.

Often the needs of thegroup must supercede theneeds of the individual.

The G.I. Generation (b. 1901–1924) is a Civic generation.


Characteristics: Adaptive / Artist

Adaptives inherit the institutions of their parents and build onthem.

Generally smaller generation thanparents

Often seen as a “good” generation

Characterized by commitment.

Belong to a group, commit to it,make contributions

Adopts and enlarges institutionsinherited from their parents.

The Silent Generation (b. 1925–1942) is a classic Adaptivegeneration.


Characteristics: Idealist / Prophet

Idealists are more interested in individuals and values than ininstitutions and traditions.

Idealists and visionaries,better poets than engineers.

Identify comes from within.

Individuality is moreimportant than fitting in.

Have distate for institutionsin general.

Baby Boomers (b. 1943–1960) are a classic Idealist generation.


Characteristics: Reactive / Nomad

Reactive groups are more negative than other generational types.

Typically have far fewersocial restrictions than theirparents at the same age.

Tend to be independentminded, progressive inyouth, become welleducated.

Distrust institutions, butwould like them to work.

Seen as a “bad” generationtrying to follow previousgeneration into revolution,but fail as society unravels

Gen X (b. 1961–1981) is a classic Reactive generation.Bill Young: 20 Generations Theory

Living Generations

GI Generation (b. 1901–1924) Civic

Silents (b. 1925–1942) Adaptive

Boomers (b. 1943–1960) Idealist

13ers or Gen X (b. 1961–1981) Reactive

Millennial or Gen Y (b. 1982–2003)

Homeland (b. 2003–????)

According to this analysis, what should we expect to be the type ofthe Millennial generation? Of the Homeland generation?


Turnings: High

Along with the cycle of generations is a cycle of four social ormood eras they call turnings.

They are precipiated by an alternating cycle of Secular Crises andSpiritual Awakenings.

Crisis: Institutional life is destroyed and rebuilt in response toa perceived threat to the nations survival. Civic authorityrevives and institutions re-form.

High: Post-crisis era when institutions are strong andindividualism is weak.

Awakening: Institutions are attacked in the name of personaland spiritual autonomy. As society reaches peak of publicprogress, people tire of social discipline.

Unraveling: Institutions are weak and distrusted, whileindividualism is strong and flourishing.


Past Crises and Awakenings

Mid 1700’s: First Great Awakening

Late 1700’s: American Revolution (Crisis)

Early 1800’s: Second Great Awakening(Protestant Revival)

Mid 1800’s: American Civil War (Crisis)

Late 1800’s: Missionary Awakening

1929–1945: Great Depression, WWII(Crisis)

1960–1980: Cultural Revolution(Awakening)

2001–????: War on Terror + Economiccrisis


Lifecycle Diagonal

Year 0 Year 22 Year 44 Year 66

Rising

Civic Adaptive ReactiveIdealist

Civic Adaptive IdealistReactive

Reactive Civic AdaptiveIdealist

Idealist Reactive CivicAdaptiveElder

Midlife

Youth

Age 44−65

Age 66−87

Age 22−43

Age 0−21

AwakeningSpiritual

CrisisSecular

Social Moment


Why This Cycle?

Each generation responds andreacts to the generation of theirparents and grandparents, andthe events those generationsprecipitate.

For example,


Responses to Lifecycle: Idealist

According to Strauss and Howe, each generational type follows apersistent life pattern.

An Idealist generation

grows up as increasingly indulgedyouth after a secular crisis;

comes of age inspired by a spiritualawakening;

fragments into narcissistic risingadults;

cultivates principles as moralisticmidlifers;

emerges as visionary elders guidingthe next secular crisis.


Responses to Lifecycle: Reactive

A Reactive generation

grows up as unprotected and criticizedyouth during a spiritual awakening;

matures into risk taking, alienated risingadults;

mellows into pragmatic midlife leadersduring a secular crisis;

maintains respect (but less influence) asreclusive elders.


Responses to Lifecycle: Civic

A Civic generation

grows up as increasingly protectedyouth after a spiritual awakening;

comes of age overcoming a secularcrisis;

unifies into an herioc and achievingcadre of rising adults;

sustains that image while buildinginstitutions as powerful midlifers;

emerges as busy elders attacked bythe next spiritual awakening.


Responses to Lifecycle: Adaptive

An Adaptive generation

grows up as overprotected andsuffocated youths during a secularcrisis;

matures into risk-averse,conformist rising adults;

produces indecisive midlifearbitrator-leaders during a spiritualawakening;

maintains influence (but lessrespect) as sensitive elders.


Provisos

Clearly, not everyone in a “generation” is going to think andact similarly.Folks born near the boundaries form “cusp” generations thatmay share characteristics with two generations.The poor, people of color and GLBT folks may have verydifferent experiences than those that characterize “their”generation.


Exercise 2

Gather again into your generational groups. Within your groupanswer the following questions:

1 Identify your cohort and the type of your cohort (Idealist,Reactive, Civic, Adaptive).

2 Do you think that Strauss and Howe’s characterization of yourgeneration is accurate? Why or why not?

3 Does the life pattern they outline ring true? Why or why not?

4 Does it still ring true for members of minority groups?

5 Now do the same for the generation of your parents.

6 Speculate how this all might be relevant to the church.
